OverExposed
“OverExposed: The Life of William Sanderson” is a hilarious mockumentary that follows a film crew along with the director, William Sanderson himself, as they try and make a movie of sorts. It revolves around the crew giving their thoughts on William Sanderson and his ability to actually direct a film. It’s shot like The Office with a lot of headshots and interviews of behind the scenes.
If you’ve ever worked on a film set, then this film is super relatable. There’s so much that goes into filmmaking and this over exaggerates the process of it, especially when it comes down to behind the scene stuff. This is a satire through and through, and the fact it focuses on the director being irresponsible (there’s some out there like that) makes this so amusing. There are a lot of funny interviews and one in particular made me laugh out loud because of how awful and relevant it is regarding the industry. I’m not going to spoil the moment because the delivery is so well done and really caught me off guard with how out of the blue, but natural, it was.
What I loved the most about this short film was all the interviews it decided to include. Each character had a very distinct voice and the acting really brought it together. Half the time I forgot it was acting because it seemed so real. These characters can easily exist in the movie industry. Really, this would work as a series of some sort or even a feature length if the filmmakers wanted to expand on it. There’s so many questions that I had about how the project actually came about and how these people know one another.
I’m a huge fan of mockumentaries just because of how over the top, yet real they feel. Which is the case for this film. I’ve already stated that a lot of the things in here are over exaggerated for humor, but it feels like it’s an actual behind the scene shoot of a production set going off the rails because of how dysfunctional the cast and crew are. Let’s not forget that there’s an antagonist, another director, trying to sabotage Sanderson’s own set for his own benefit of stealing the cast and crew for his own production. It’s a fun rivalry and the fact we get to see it sort of unfold in a documentary-style really sold the idea that these two are in fact bitter enemies who hate each other.
The editing and the direction really make this short film work (along with the actors pulling off a really believable performance). I was a little sad when it ended because I wanted to follow these people into their next project and see what else was in store for them. If the cast and crew felt so inclined to continue this story in some way, I certainly would not be opposed. There is a definite voice and style in this and everybody did a wonderful job.
